Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province and one of China's ancient capitals, sits on the Guanzhong plain in the Wei River valley of north-central China, sheltered to the south by the Qinling mountains, at approximately 34.34°N, 108.94°E. It has a temperate, monsoon-influenced climate (Köppen Dwa/Cwa) on the dividing line between north and south China — with hot, humid, rainy summers and cold, dry winters — and four distinct seasons.

Summer, from June to August, is hot and the wet season, with July the warmest month — average highs around 32–33°C — and heatwaves that can exceed 38°C, made muggy by monsoon humidity. Most of the year's rain falls in these months, often as heavy afternoon thunderstorms, and a rainy spell in September can bring persistent autumn rain to the Wei valley.

Winter, from December to February, is cold and dry, with January the coldest month — average highs around 5°C and lows near -4°C, occasionally colder in snaps from the north. Snowfall is light and infrequent, skies are often grey with winter haze, and the season is generally dry; the Qinling mountains to the south shelter the city from the coldest air, keeping winters milder than the open north.

Xi'an receives around 550–600 mm of precipitation a year, concentrated in the summer and early autumn, with a notable secondary peak of persistent rain in September, while winter and spring are dry. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Xi'an sits close to the climatic boundary between northern and southern China, with the Qinling mountains to its south sheltering it from the harshest northern cold and marking the divide between the dry north and humid south. Its distinctive autumn rains — a spell of persistent September drizzle known regionally — and its dry, hazy winters and hot, thundery summers give the ancient capital four sharply defined seasons.

To follow any single measurement in Xian more closely, use our live instruments: the online barometer for atmospheric pressure, the thermometer for temperature, the hygrometer for humidity, the anemometer for wind speed, the wind vane for wind direction, and the rain gauge for rainfall.